More than 4,700 male and female volunteers from general education students took part in carrying out field work to improve the urban landscape, in cooperation with 10 municipalities across the regions of the Kingdom, as part of the “Urban Beauty Cities” initiative launched by the Ministry of Municipalities and Housing, with the aim of enhancing quality of life and activating volunteer work in cities.
The phase completed so far recorded the participation of (4,706) volunteers across 10 municipalities, which included: (Hail, Al-Madinah Al-Munawwarah, Jeddah, Taif, Najran, Al-Baha, Dammam, Al-Ahsa, Tabuk, and Jazan), while the initiative will complete its work over the coming period in seven other municipalities, namely: (the Northern Borders, Riyadh, Qassim, Hafar Al-Batin, Al-Jouf, the Holy Capital, and Asir), as part of a comprehensive plan covering 17 municipalities across the various regions of the Kingdom.
The initiative was launched under the supervision of the Ministry of Municipalities and Housing, represented by the regional municipalities, in partnership with the Saudi National Bank (SNB), and implemented by Wathar Architecture Company Ltd., in an integrated model that brings together the municipal sector, the banking sector, and the education sector, in a way that enhances community sustainability and consolidates partnership in improving the urban environment.
The “Urban Beauty Cities” initiative is one of the most prominent student volunteer projects of this year, as it targets, across its two phases during the first and second academic semesters, the participation of more than 10,000 male and female volunteers, at an average of five volunteer hours per participant, exceeding 50,000 volunteer hours directed toward direct field work in municipal facilities, schools, and public sites.
The initiative is based on three main tracks, which include: (traffic safety, tree planting, and decorative painting), with the aim of improving the urban landscape, in addition to enhancing students’ participation in field work, developing their sense of responsibility toward public facilities, and entrenching the culture of volunteer work and community service.
This initiative comes as an extension of the efforts of the Ministry of Municipalities and Housing to empower the community and enhance its role as an active partner in developing cities, in a way that contributes to achieving urban development objectives, in line with Saudi Vision 2030.
